Christmas Shenanigans
by Kyprish Prophetess
Summary: Well, someone left a computer unattended! It's not my fault I'm full of stupid ideas. Seriously, this thing is weird. Enjoy, if you want.
1. Chapter 1

A.N. I really should be getting sleep for tomorrow's festivities. Or helping my parents wrap the last of the gifts. Or working on homework. So… I'm gonna write Christmas fics until I run out if ideas. Or fandoms, which seems more likely at this point.

Happy holidays!

Also, if I made any glaring errors (terrible grammar, character slips, wrong name, etc.) please tell me, but give me a break; I haven't read or watched Yu Gi Oh in forever!

~{}~

Seto Kaiba wasn't a very sentimental person. Nor was he very religious, and certainly not of the Christian persuasion. However, he could understand the bonds of family, despite what the Geek Squad thought, so he allowed his workers to have a week off for the holidays. The board could go fuck themselves, they were ahead of schedule.

Mokuba was obviously delighted that he was home, and had thus far managed to drag him shopping to buy gifts for everyone Mokuba knew, decorate the entire mansion, and buy three large trees that stood in the living room, servants break room and foyer.

(Seto didn't bother questioning the one in the servants room, though it made little sense, as they also had the next few days off of work. Really, he was feeling extremely kind lately. Yugi would claim holiday spirit, after everything happened.)

This, though, was going a bit far.

"Mokuba, why are we here?" They were pulling into the Kame Game Shop's small parking lot, which was nearly full. Good, they could use the business.

"I told you! I bought gifts for everyone, and I want to deliver them early, so we don't miss anyone!" He was bouncing in his seat, already reaching behind him to grab the large bag of presents they'd brought. Seto turned off the car, sighing.

"No, why am _I _here, specifically. I really don't care about anyone here." Mokuba scowled at him, shoving a few bags into his arms before opening his door.

"You do too, you just won't admit it! Besides, you helped with getting all these, you have to claim credit! Now come on, Yugi said everyone was inside already!"

Well, that would make things easier, if everyone was here. He certainly didn't want to make this trip again, especially if it meant running into…

"Wait, everyone is here? What, are they having some kind of party?" Mokuba grinned at him, before running ahead into the shop, leaving him with an armful of bags and a scowl.

He honestly should have expected this; Mokuba did want him to have some kind of social life, and as they all already knew the bizarre events of the last few months/years/ millennia/whatever, he supposed it was the most logical.

But honestly! They were all damned chipper all of the time! He couldn't understand that optimism, and what he didn't understand frankly annoyed him. It didn't help matters that Jounouchi, his main form of entertainment via fights picked at school, was incredibly withdrawn lately, throwing him into another bout of confusion. Was he bored of the rather ridiculous hostilities? It struck him as odd.

But he really needed to get inside, before Mokuba came out and got angry. Honestly, the boy worried too much, which was funny, coming from him.

He entered the crowded shop, noting several new games on the shelves and memorizing their names. Things in the Kame Game Shop tended to become big sellers shortly after their appearance. Yugi (and Yami, who had somehow stuck around) being the King(s) of Games probably had something to do with that.

Yugi's grandfather looked at him when the bell above the door rang, and as he approached, he smiled and nodded, saying

"You can go to the back; your brother ran through a moment ago." Seto gave a very small rueful grin back, before ducking past into the 'back,' which seemed to be the entrance to their home.

'Everyone' seemed to be the majority of those involved in the various shenanigans in the Shadow Realm; the Ishtars were sitting near the fire, both Bakuras and Anzu sat on the couch, and Yami was standing next to a table where Mokuba was sorting out his pile of gifts, chattering happily. Yugi was nowhere to be seen, but voices from an open doorway that appeared to lead to the kitchen were clue enough to his whereabouts.

Ryou was the first to notice his arrival, and waved, calling out a greeting. He nodded back, walking towards Mokuba and setting down his own things.

"Kaiba. Happy holidays." Yami took the last two out of his hands, carefully setting them aside. Seto was a bit surprised he hadn't challenged him to a duel, and briefly wondered if he'd been forbidden from doing so by Yugi.

"Oh good, you did come! We thought Mokuba might've been joking when he said that!" Seto winced a bit as Anzu noticed him as well. Her voice was just a _little _high for his ears.

"They're here already?" A new voice came from the open doorway, and he glanced over to see Jounouchi looking through straight at him. Looking right into his eyes, Seto noticed that he seemed oddly tired. What on earth could he be losing sleep over? Granted, he didn't know him that well, but still…

"It would appear so, yes." He hesitated, but gave in to the 'holiday spirit' that seemed to have overtaken him of late. "Happy holidays, I suppose." Jou gave him an odd look, before grinning.

"Back at'cha! Now, I gotta keep the soup from boiling over, so I'll abscond for now." He vanished back into the kitchen.

"Abscond? Since when do you know words like that? What does that even mean?" Honda, unnoticed until now, called out.

Seto responded with "It means to run away," just as Jou yelled that he had read it somewhere,

"And I don't want no comments on my ability to read, either!" Mokuba glared for emphasis, and Seto covered his mouth, grinning behind it. Then he looked around the room again, this time seeing a tree in the corner. Mokuba glanced at it as well, before turning to Yami.

"Should I move the things there, under the tree?" Yami shook his head, spikes nearly impaling Anzu, who hastily retreated back to the fire, sitting next to Ishizu.

"Yugi wants those to be separate, as they're just the family's. Are you and your brother staying for the whole party, or will you be leaving shortly?" Mokuba shrugged, before turning pleading eyes to him.

"Pleeeeeaaaase can we stay?" He took a deep breath, carefully putting on his 'I'm delivering bad news' face, before looking down at him.

"We can stay." Mokuba pouted, and began to say 'please' again, before realizing what he'd said.

"We can? Really?" Seto shrugged, inwardly smiling, but keeping his face neutral.

"I see no reason to do otherwise. We don't have any plans." Mokuba launched himself at him, nearly bowling them both over.

"Thankyouthhankyouthankyou-"

"Mokuba. Enough." HE covered his mouth with his hand, still grinning, before stepping back and running into the kitchen. Seto hoped he wasn't allowed near anything that required cooking; Mokuba's attention span was incredible in it's inability to watch things that were on fire.

~{}~

It didn't take long for Jounouchi, Yugi and Mokuba to finish dinner, which consisted of the aforementioned soup, rolls, salad, and several pies for dessert. Seto, who everyone seemed to think had been drugged before coming, gave ample compliments to the chefs. Yugi immediately claimed he had only helped, and Jou was the master here. Jou received with a wary grin and immediately launched into a rant of how those who did the smaller tasks were the most important, and that Mokuba and Yugi were clearly responsible.

This led to Honda saying that as he had done nothing, which was the smallest of all tasks, he should be thanked. Anzu smacked the back of his head, while Marik (the dark half of Malik, though he claimed to be 'better now' without the Rod) and Bakura (who made similar claims) nearly fell out of their seats laughing.

They had been herded back to the table of gifts, which seemed to have expanded in their absence. Mokuba and Yugi claimed elf duty, and began handing out the packages on the table. Seto was surprised to find he had several as well, and looked at the labels in confusion.

_To: Seto Kaiba_

_From: Anzu _

_Everyone should enjoy the holiday's together!_

_To: Kaiba _

_From: Honda_

_You need to lighten up! We're not board members, don't be so stiff all the time._

_To: Seto_

_From: Yugi and Yami_

_So glad you came over!_

_To: Kaiba (the big one)_

_From: The Ishtars_

_Kaiba, I apologise in advance if there is anything strange in here; Marik and Malik bought it and wrapped it from all of us before I could see it._

_To: Kaiba_

_From: Ryou and Bakura_

_Have a little fun, kay Priest?_

_To: Moneybags _(this was crossed out)_ Kaiba_

_From: Jounouchi_

_I figure you can buy whatever you need-_

The tag had been ripped in half, leaving him wondering about the rest of the message. He glanced up at Jounouchi, who was apparently sitting next to him on the couch. He looked up at him.

"Yeah?" He held up the package in question.

"Why only half a tag? Didn't feel like finishing the message?" Jou scowled, before peering closely at him in surprise. Seto realized he was grinning again, and tried to frown instead.

"No, don't, you need at smile more. An' the other half is in the box. It'd give away the gift!" He was distracted by Yugi, who was calling out that everyone would just go at once, "so the gift givers don't feel like embarrassed when their gifts are being opened." Jou smiled at him, before carefully picking up a gift from his pile. Seto reached to do the same, purposefully leaving Jou's gift for last.

It appeared that Mokuba had been talking to them more than he'd thought, as he received a pair of gloves he'd been meaning to replace, as well as some new games made for single players (and one for two, presumably himself and Mokuba). The Ishtar one turned out to be a box of sex toys and lube, though a computer game at the bottom looked promising. Ishizu caught a glimpse as he closed the box again, though, and was ratehr furious.

"You said you'd been appropiate! How dare you go and buy things like that for a present!"

"Hey, we got him a game!""Yeah, and he could use the others things!" She glared at the pair, before turning to him.

"I am so sorry for this!" He waved his hand.

"You didn't know. Besides, Marik is right." He waited for a moment, until she was looking at him awkwardly, before adding "The game does look interesting." She smiled, appearing relieved.

"Jeez, that was close. I was worried you were going to leave it at that." He glanced at Jounouchi again, who had a cookbook (which he didn't odd anymore), some new cards, and a large wooden box that was unlabelled. His own gift, and Mokuba's were still sitting wrapped in his lap.

"Perhaps I meant it, and only changed my answer for her benefit." Jou stuck out his tongue.

"I hope not! There was steak-flavored lube in there!" Seto raised a brow.

"And you know this because…?" Jou waved a hand at him, turning to Mokuba's present.

"I'll tell you when you're older." Mokuba giggled, muttering "You say that to me all the time!"

Seto rolled his eyes and began to open the last gift. It appeared to be a mess of cloth, with the other half of the tag on top.

_-so, I'll make you something instead!_

He pulled it out, carefully, as the cloth fell away to reveal three boxes of assorted fudge and cookies. And more cloth. He pulled the whole thing out, unfolding it so he could see it all.

It was a quilt, of some soft white fabric. He heard some gasps of surprise from across the room, and flipped it over.

This side had a Blue Eyes White Dragon, carefully stitched onto a background of starlit night, wings outstretched in flight. He felt over the layers of thread and cloth, feeling the thousands of stitches that had gone into it's creation.

"Holy shit! Just how long did that thing take, Jou?" Honda exclaimed from the other end of the room, pulling Seto out of his revere. He looked up to see Jou scratching the back of his head, grinning.

"Er… A few weeks? Maybe two months. Just finished it the other night!" He displayed his fingers for them to see, which elicted groans of pity from the others.

"What's with your fingers, Jou?" Well, at least he and Mokuba were both confused.

"I'm really good a' injuring' myself, see? Stabbed with a needle a fair few times." His fingertips were mottled with small holes, and a burn on the left palm.

"Oh… Ooh, is that my gift? Open it! I want to see your face!" Jou grinned at him.

"Hold yer horses, I'm goin'!" He finished tearing off the paper, and revealed the object inside, which was a large Red Eyes Black Dragon plushie. Jou stared at it for a long moment. Mokuba's grin began to fade, just as he looked up at the room at large.

"I'm gonna do something' extremely girly now. Jus' fair warnin'." He took a breath.

"Ooh, it's so _cute! _Yer new name is Bard, and you and I will be great friends! Thanks Mokuba!" He smiled happily, setting the new toy on his lap. Mokuba sighed in relief.

"What's the name mean?" Seto couldn't help but ask, folding the quilt away while trying to decide if he should display it or sleep with it on his bed.

"It's close to REBD, kinda, so… yeah that's it." He looked at the folded up quilt, before looking away, towards his own things again. Seto frowned, before realizing he hadn't said a word about it yet.

"Thank you for the quilt, it looks very well made. Who taught you to sew? Or cook, for that matter?" Yugi looked up at them from his place on the floor, his own Dark Magician plushie settled in his lap.

"Jou knows lots of weird things, like old music and dancing, how car engines work, bunches of books, and more! Where did ya learn all of that, Jou?" Now most of the crowd was looking their way, and Jou was beginning to look awkward.

"Well, mah neighbors felt bad fer me, what with dad an' the gangs. So they took ta raisin' an' teachin' me things. Since they were mostly housewives and lil' old ladies…" He didn't bother finishing. Seto looked down again, at the baked goods and quilt, then around the room, seeing more boxes like his around the room, as well as other handmade gifts with similar embellishments, though none as extravagant as the quilt.

"Well, they either are very good teachers, or had a remarkable student." He said, quietly, so that none but Jou could hear him. He looked up in surprise, before smiling at him. It wasn't as happy looking as his others, but seemed more truthful.

Seto wondered how many of his huge smiles were fake.

Jou turned back towards Seto's own gift, leaving Mokuba's in his lap but slipping the cards into the box with what appeared to be his other things.

After peeling the paper away and carefully tossing it to the floor with the rest, he opened the box, revealing the backpack inside, decorated already with an assortment of Scapegoats. Inside it were several new cards and, though Jou probably wouldn't find it for many days, an invitation to the next Duel tournament taking place in April. Only champions would be receiving invitations; all other participants would be in large preliminary rounds taking place soon.

Several of the others had also received these invites, but Seto was willing to bet quite a bit that Jou was expecting to have to take the preliminary rounds. He would tell him himself if he hadn't RSVP'd in a few days.

Jou grinned at him, thanking him for the gift, thanking him again when he found the rest of the cards. He put the rest of his things inside the bag, leaving Bard in his lap.

The evening quickly dissolved into singing and joking around, before Jou checked his watch and groaned.

"Aw man, I gotta go! Nice seein' everyone, have some nice hols!" He stood, stretching. Yugi hopped up as well, saying he'd get his coat.

"You really have work tonight? Jeez, do you get any break this week? Christmas is in two days!" Honda complained from the floor, where he'd been talking with Bakura and Marik. Jou shrugged, placing Bard inside his bag with the box of mystery things and cards.

"Yah, someone's gotta pay rent, and I'm livin' alone fer now, so that'll have ta be me!" Yugi returned with the coat, which he pulled on quickly.

"You're living alone? I thought you lived with your father." Ryou looked up at him from where he was poring over some book with Ishizu.

"I did. Moved out when I found a place that'd take me. Anyway, love to stay and chat, but I gotta go!" He picked up the bag, thanked everyone again, and was gone, leaving the room far quieter than before.

Seto frowned, glancing at his watch as well.

"Mokuba, it is getting late. We'll leave soon."

Why did Jou have work at ten o'clock, anyway?

~{}~

It was Christmas Eve, and Seto was driving home after picking up some food for himself and Mokuba. He wasn't the greatest of cooks, but he was fairly sure he could manage to follow the instructions for pasta.

He stopped for a light, glancing around the street. It was deserted, unusual for this area. No matter the weather, there were usually people out and about, doing things that were probably illegal if anyone cared to look. It was the quickest way to his home outside of Domino, otherwise he'd prefer to avoid the area.

As the light changed and he drove on, he noticed a lone figure walking down the street. That coat looked familiar…

He pulled over, opening the door and calling out to Jou, who glanced up in surprise.

"Kaiba?" Seto rolled his eyes.

"No, that Priest from Egypt. Yes, it's me. You look cold." That was understatement. He looked freezing.

"Yeah, this is an old coat. What're you doin' here, of all places?" Seto gestured for him to get into the passenger seat, wanting to close the door.

"Get in, before you freeze. I'm heading home, and this is the quickest way out." Jou hesitated at the door, before a strong gust of wind had him jumping in and slamming the door. Seto began driving again.

"Where are you headed? I'll give you a lift." Jou pulled his hands out of his pockets, placing them on the heater.

"Home. It's only a few blocks down this way." Seto turned at his direction, hesitating before voicing his next thought.

"Alone?" Jou nodded.

"Yah, I managed to wrangle the next two days off, but everyone's hangin' with their families, so I'm just gonna rest instead. Here we are." Seto frowned, even as he pulled over. Jou began to get out.

"Wait." He rubbed a hand over his brow, wondering where his sanity went.

"Come to the mansion with me. Mokuba will be pleased to see you, and I can't let that comment go like that." Jou stared at him, before slowly sitting back down.

"When did you become such a bleedin' heart?" He scowled.

"Can it mutt, I'm blaming all of Motou's friendship speeches." Jou chuckled.

"Fine then. But if you don't wan' me beggin' clothes offa ya, I'm gonna have to get something' from my apartment." Seto waved a hand.

"Fine, but hurry. Mokuba's waiting for me." Jou nodded, dashing into the building. Seto took the opportunity to call Mokuba.

"Hello? Seto, where are you?"

"I'm picking up a stray for Christmas." Mokuba made a confused noise.

"Jounouchi. He's way too pitiable for my health. We'll be home soon."

"Jou's coming over? Cool! I'll find some movies to watch! Hurry home!"

"Of course. Bye." A dial tone came from the phone, and he tucked it into his pocket as Jou tumbled back into the car, panting a bit and holding the new bag in his arms.

The drive was quiet. Their entrance into the house, not so much.

"Jou!" A black blur came out of the front doors, barreling into Jou. He laughed as they both tumbled into the snow.

"Hey kid. Hope you don't mind me crashin' yer party!" He was dragged into the house by his arm. Seto watched them pass, only to blink when he realized he was attached to this crazy train via Jou's hand on his sleeve.

Several movies later, they were all asleep on the couch, popcorn and pop laying around the room. Seto, the last to fall, didn't manage to draw up annoyance at Jou's head on his shoulder, before dozing off.


	2. Chapter 2

_Mmm… I could get used to this…_ What this was took a moment to realize. When Seto eventually figured out it was the smell of eggs and bacon coming from the kitchen, he sat up in confusion, looking around the living room. The remnants of the nights activities still lay around the room in a confused pattern, and Mokuba was sound asleep on the loveseat. The only thing missing was their house guest.

He stood, glad he'd been talked into wearing pyjamas by both Mokuba and Jou, and walked to the kitchen, noticing that faint humming and a radio joined the sounds of cooking food as he approached.

Inside, Jou was managing a pan of eggs, another of bacon, while watching some toast on the other side of the room and mixing some kind of dough in a bowl on the counter next to him. It was like a domestic scene of Hell's Kitchen. He looked up as Seto coughed in the entrance, grinning ear to ear.

"G'mornin, Kaib'! Hope you like yer eggs scrambl'd, cause you don't have any more now. Why's the house so bare o' food?" Seto walked further inside, glancing around. A few cabinets stood open, their sparse contents proclaimed to the world.

"I am not the greatest of cooks, so we tend to eat out or order in for meals when the cook isn't around. I gave everyone the week off for the holidays, but didn't think to ask for her to prepare some meals in advance." Jou chuckled absently, beginning to serve up the eggs.

"Well, ain't tha' nice o' yeh. And fer letting' me come here fer Christmas. I can make somethin' fer dinner, if we can get some food." He finished with the eggs, moving on to check the bacon, then the toast, which he pulled out and put on a large plate, pushing it towards Seto.

"Here, butter this, will ya? And hurry, 'fore it gets cold." Seto looked at the plate of toast, then the butter, before shrugging and doing what he was told. Who knew, maybe the blond could teach him to prepare things besides instant pasta and rice.

"What's all this for, anyway? You didn't need to make breakfast for everyone. When did you even get up?" Seto glanced at Jou as he spoke, noticing, not for the first time, how little weight he had. Whatever was there was muscle, evidence of a hard life and a hard worker.

"I always get up early! It's the best time to get things done, and it means you can goof off for the rest of the day without a worry. Besides, I like cookin', reminds me of when my family was still together…" He trailed off. Seto wondered at the lack of accent.

"Do you always talk like that?" Jou blinked, looking at him before turning back to the food in front of him, flipping the bacon over.

"Like what?" Seto finished the toast, and set aside the knife he'd been using.

"That accent. I believe most of it is where you live, but it often sounds like you're forcing it out." Jou chuckled again.

"Oh, that. I do put it on, sometimes. Ma raised me t' talk well, so when she took Ren an' left, I did jus' the opposite, to spite 'er. Now its more habit than 'nythin' else, or else its from bein' in th' gangs." He served the bacon onto another plate, setting it aside to continue stirring the bowl of dough.

"What is that?" Seto decided to ignore the train of thought that had just entered his mind. Which consisted of Jou speaking in perfect syntax, and how oddly arousing the thought was. Not that his accent wasn't, too… Argh!

See, this is why he was ignoring that train. It was weird.

"Cookie dough. I wanted to make some fer later. Barely had nuff to put together, though." He held it up for inspection.

"… Why are you mixing it by hand?"

"Cause then I could watch the food!" He grinned at him, before beginning to make up three plates of food, carrying these and the others with the rest to the kitchen table that was rarely used. Seto had the vague idea that the cook and other workers ate their lunch there.

He picked up the rest of the dishes and carried them to the table.

"By the way, why ain't Mokuba bouncing' around like a hyperactive squirrel, wantin' t' open gifts?" Seto chuckled, sitting down. Jou rose again, walking around to the other side of the kitchen where a pot of coffee had been brewing, apparently. How he had missed that, he didn't know.

"He undoubtedly woke up, almost did exactly that, before realizing he had no gift for you and, feeling terrible that you would have nothing to open, is trying to find something." Jou eyed him as he set a two mugs down, before sitting across from him and beginning to eat.

"Tha's silly; I don't need nuthin'. An' you're letting' me stay here, instead o' at home by meself." But he looked a bit eager, and Seto believed that the idea someone cared enough to give him something extra was probably making him as excited as he was to not be alone.

"Regardless, he is either surfing for something with delivery services offered for today, or that he can talk me into picking up later, when it appears we'll be getting groceries." Jou laughed a bit, before gesturing towards the food.

"Eat. It's gonna go t' waste sittin' there. It's not like I poisoned it 'r something'. See? I'm eatin'!" He took another bite for emphasis. Seto sipped pensively at the coffee, inwardly smirking.

"Perhaps you did, and are hoping to lure me into a false sense of security by pretending to eat it yourself." Jou rubbed his nose, and for a moment Seto wondered if he had gone too far already, and one of their rather famous fights was about to break out.

"No! He 'as discovered my plot! I am ruined! Now I shall ne'er have the final scene in which I explain my entire plan to the hero before his dramatic death! All because Kib' didn't die here!" He paused. "Oh wait," then mined pulling out a gun and shooting him in the heart.

"Problem solved. 'Sides, what good would killin' ya do? I need ya alive t' sign yer company over t' me!" He went back to eating. Seto finally took a bite, and tasted only a few spices, no poison.

"Why would I do that?" Jou shrugged.

"A gambling' game o' some kind? Internet seems t' think it'll happen. There're tons o' theories as to what mayhem I'd cause as CEO," he grinned, seeming to think about what he'd apparently read on the internet.

"I lik'd the one where th' world spontaneously exploded, meself." Seto paused, looking at him.

"Why would that be your favorite? I'd assume you'd like the idea of succeeding." Jou grinned at him.

"Cause it's proof most people think th' idea is stupid. 'Sides, whoever it was draws really good explosions, and I gotta commend tha'." Seto snorted, just as Mokuba walked in, looking around.

"Seto! Um… can I talk to you really quick? Please?" Seto gave Jou a victorious look, before nodding and rising to leave.

"Yes?" They stood a few paces away from the kitchen door, hoping Jou wouldn't hear them.

"Um… well, Jou doesn't have any gifts under the tree, so I was wondering…"

"If we could go get something for him?" A nod. "Are you willing to wait until we can leave to open your own gifts?" More nods.

"Yes, of course we can. I'm not Scrooge, you know." Mokuba giggled, before quickly walking past him into the kitchen.

"You made breakfast!"

~{}~

Thankfully, Mokuba seemed to know what he needed. He'd even thought to have it placed aside so he could go right in and pick it up, avoiding the ridiculous amount of crowds the shopping center had. Seto sent him off with instructions to get the thing he'd managed to call in for as well, and he and Jou went off to get food.

"So, what're you two hungry fer tonight? Or do you want me t' jus' stock yer cupboards fer the next week, t' be safe?" Seto glared at a few shoppers who were staring at them, before responding.

"It's not like we'll know what to do with anything you get, so just something for dinner. As to what… I don't know, do you have a favorite?" Jou shrugged, tossing a few things that Seto couldn't identify into the bag.

"Food is food, I can't afford t' be picky. Usually am about how ripe it is, but tha's another story. Fish, maybe?" He looked at the selection, before holding up a salmon that was, apparently, from Alaska.

"I don't care, so if you want, sure. Is there anything you'll need with that?" He shook his head, so they went to the checkout.

"Hi, find everything… Jounouchi? Is that you?" They both looked up at the checkout girl, who was staring at him in surprise. Jou tilted his head.

"Mira…?" She clapped, beaming.

"It is you! Oh, what luck! I haven't seen you in years! How've you been?" She, thankfully, began to scan their items as she talked.

"Good, good. Heard you got outta the neighborhood, glad to see you're doin' well. Didja manage t' quit cursin, 'r we jus' that lucky?" She grinned at him. Seto looked her over. Besides the couple of marks on her face that appeared to be piercing holes slightly covered with makeup, he couldn't see much interesting about her. Wait… there was a tattoo under her sleeve.

Did Jou have a tattoo? What would it be, if he did? Seto lost himself in this line of thought, only coming out when Jou waved a hand in front of his face.

"Kaib'. Wake up, you gotta pay. Or run, if ya want." The cashier glared playfully as Seto handed over his card.

"You're hangin' out with some big lugs now, ain't ya? Kaiba Seto, big-time CEO and strategy master." That was oddly worded…

"Strategy mastah? That's different?" Jou seemed to agree, as he bagged up their things.

"Well, he was in chess first, didn't ya know? Read it somewhere or other. Figure that if he's good at that and Duel Monsters, he's gotta be a strategist." She scribbled down something on a scrap of paper, and handed it over with Seto's card and their receipt.

"Give me a ring later, ya hear? Merry Christmas!" She turned to the next person in line, and they wlaked out.

"Who was that?" They clambored into his car. Well, Jou clambered, Seto practically glided into his seat. Clambering was for those with less dignity… or inhibitions, one or the other.

"An old friend from afore I moved. We were fairly close, but she stayed in tha gangs when I left. Never knew wha' happened. S'pose I'll find out now." He held up the slip of paper.

"You realize she was flirting with you, don't you?" Jou blinked. Seto began driving towards the shopping center, hoping Mokuba was done.

"Er… wha'? No she wasn't! Girl doesn't flirt at all!" He gestured a bit as he said this, and sounded like he was quoting someone. Perhaps he was.

"Maybe she didn't, but she does now, and that was it. If you're looking for a date, you've got an opportunity there." Granted, that very thought filled him with dread, but Seto was quickly realizing via Mokuba that keeping secrets like that would jus get him into trouble later.

"Um… well, I guess I could call her, or… er…" Jou looked flustered, fis face turning a bit red.

"Relax. She didn't ask you out, she asked to catch up. I doubt she's going to expect a date from it. I'm just stating she's interested." He paused a moment, but curiosity pressed him on.

"Are you interested in her?" Jou turned to look at him, but he focused on the road.

"Erm… no, not really. Maybe eventually, but no. I got one crush right now, I don't need another!" With great difficulty, Seto kept himself from asking about who that was. This was torture enough without specifics.

Mokuba had the two bags under his coat when they picked him up from the front door. Jou glared out the window at a group of kids as they stopped. They all quickly shuffled into the building, stomping out cigarettes as they went.

"What was that about?" Mokuba was panting as he hopped into the back seat, having run to the car to escape the bitter cold.

"They were eyin' Mokuba an' the other shoppers. Tryin' to act all tough with their cigs, even. So I scared 'em off." Mokuba seemed to recover his breath from the backseat.

"With a glare? Are you that scary?" He sounded doubtful. Seto was less so, but it still seemed a bit odd. He would be less willing to believe it had he not seen it a moment ago.

"I got a really bad reputation, both in th' gangs an' after, but I doubt that was it. They prolly were new at this, got scared off at th' first sign o' trouble." Both Kaiba's were silent at that.

~{}~

All three went their separate ways as soon as they arrived at the house. Jou to the kitchen to begin cooking, Mokuba to wrap gifts, and Seto…

Well, Seto was looking into Jou's history. Curiosity was getting the better of him.

He quickly typed in the address he'd almost dropped him off at, looking into their history. Not the greatest of buildings, though it did fairly well and had decent conditions considering the area it was in. Jou had been living there for several months, apparently alone, and working several jobs. Seto did remember that Jou was one of the only ones at school allowed to have a job besides himself.

He looked deeper, noting in the back of his mind that most people would feel guilty about this. Oh well, it was technically public knowledge. And Jou would probably tell him if he asked. He just liked to seem all-knowing.

Jou had several jobs, as he'd thought, all at random points in the city. They included Yugi's shop some weekends, a bakery every Saturday morning, two different grocery stores, weekday afternoons, a dojo on Sunday mornings and Wednesday afternoons, and what appeared to be an old-fashioned weapons shop whenever they appeared to need help. Some other shifts here and there as well, usually for a few hours in the 'ghetto' area of town.

_Probably helping out old neighbors. Still, how is he still standing? That's a lot of work for one person still in school… _On a hunch, he looked into financials. Most of the money had been paid to some anonymous sources, probably gangs again, though he noted that the payments had tapered off, and money was building steadily in Jou's accounts. Hopefully he would quit a few of those jobs and relax.

He closed everything, aware that Jou would be pissed beyond belief if he knew what Seto was doing, and instead did a quick check of his stocks and email, before heading back downstairs.

Mokuba was just placing the last boxes under the tree, staring at a few in confusion.

"Those weren't there before, were they, Seto?" He gestured towards two sitting together apart from the others. He glanced at the tags.

_To: Kaiba_

_From: Jounouchi _(scratched out) _Katsuya_

_To: Mokuba_

_From: Jou_

"Oh, I see how it is! You get 'Katsuya,' but I still only get Jou!" Mokuba giggled, looking at the tags as well. "But when did he manage that? I thought you two stayed together while you were shopping!"

"We did…" Seto was at a loss. Had he already had things prepared? Made something just now? What the heck?

"Oh, there you are! I was wonderin' what you two were sneakin' off ta do! Come on, we can bake cookies, eat some early dinner, then open those, mmkay?" Jou steered them into the kitchen as he spoke, so by the time either of them had answers prepared, they were already seated with cookie cutters in hand.

"Now, cut those out, an' put 'em on the pan, while I take care of dinner."

"Aren't you the little housewife." Jou's head shot around, glaring at Seto. HE held his hands up, shaking his head.

"My hands are clean in this," he glanced at the flour covering them, "Well, my mouth anyway." Mokuba grinned, but it faded as Jou's glare rounded on him. Abruptly, scaring off a gang of teenagers seemed really easy with that glare.

"Oh, I'm _sorry, _does me being able to cook change my gender? Am I not allowed to be 'manly,' he used actual air quotes here, "if I can fend for myself? Well, Mr., if you think that, you can go without dinner." He paused, eyes traveling towards the rolling pin lying innocently on the counter nearby. Mokuba's eyes followed, and he gulped.

"I'm sorry, I was just kidding! Don't kill me, it's Christmas!" Jou glared a moment longer, before he burst out laughing.

"You shoulda seen yer face!" He managed to wheeze out between breaths. Mokuba pouted in his seat, while Seto chuckled quietly, cutting out little candy canes in the dough in front of him.

Absently, he wondered whether Jou could use a rolling pin as an effective weapon, before abandoning that train of thought as terrifying.

Nothing of particular consequence happened between then and the eventual unwrapping of gifts, discluding a minor explosion of flour, two burnt fingers, a scarily determined paparazzi, and Seto discovering that Jou really _could _use that rolling pin well. And as a projectile.

He wondered if he was liable for injuries to the guy, before deciding he really didn't care.

Mokuba had decided that, instead of going in any sort of order, he would just decide who opened what and when. So, he opened Seto's gifts first. Mostly games, though a book was thrown into the mix as well. He looked at it oddly, peering at the cover.

"What's it about?" Seto smirked a bit before answering.

"A history of multi-player fantasy video games. Complete with illustrations and cheat codes. Oh, and it's up to date for your newest ones." Jou quickly covered his ears, just in time for the screech of joy Mokuba let out.

"I didn't even know this existed, how did you find one?" Seto rolled his eyes, deciding to open his own gift.

"It didn't, I had it made using the games we already had as a reference point for what brands to look into. You made it easy by only buying from two places." Mokuba grinned at him, before burying his nose inside.

"Bask in that image. You'll never see him so interested in a book again," Seto drawled out sarcastically as he examined the new wallet in his own gift. Mokuba didn't even react, causing Jou to giggle.

"Well, at least he's happy," Jou said as he picked up the boxes with his name on them, looking in confusion before opening Mokuba's up, revealing a Time Wizard watch.

"Aww, sweet! I've been needin' a new watch! Thanks!" He chuckled as he placed it on his wrist.

"What is it?" Seto glanced up from Jou's gift to him, frowning.

"Nuthin.' Just realizing' how many Duel Monster themed gifts we give every year. You'n Pegasus must make a fortun' offa Yug' an' I alone." He grinned again, before gesturing towards the object in Seto's hands.

"Well, hurry up, I ain't got all day!" He tore the paper apart, and pried the box open to reveal a wooden carving of two knights fighting back to back, swords out and helmets off, showing their faces.

"It's me and Mokuba," he murmured, peering closer to see the details.

"What, really? Lemme see!" Mokuba appeared next to him, leaning in to look. It was very well done- but how had he finished it in time? They both looked at him in blatant curiosity. He grinned, scratching the back of his head.

"It was nearly finished, so I brought it along, and finished this morning! Same with yours, Mokuba," he added, gesturing towards it. Mokuba dove for the box, tearing it open as fast and careful as he could.

"Oh!" It was of the same theme, each of them as knights. This one, though, had Seto apparently knighting Mokuba.

"This is so cool! Where'd you learn to make things like this, Jou?" He grinned at them both, pleased with their reactions. Seto picked his up and walked to the mantle, setting it carefully in the center.

"My old neighbor said if I was gonna be carryin' knives all o'er the place, he'd teach me to do somethin' productive with 'em. I do that when I've got a spare moment and can't stay still."

"So, are you ever going to open Seto's gift?" Mokuba leaned forward, curious as to what could be in the box. Apparently he'd resisted the urge to see what it was when he'd picked it up.

"Mm… Yeah, I suppose." He handled the box carefully, opening it up to look inside.

"A set of… chess pieces?" He peered closer, attempting to see what they were, before giving up and opening the case entirely.

"Duel Monster chess pieces…" he stared in awe, fingers absently trailing over the frosted glass of each piece, dragons and magicians shining under his hand. He looked up then, a tear or two in his eyes, grinning sheepishly.

"I'm not that good at chess, ya know." Mokuba glanced at the two of them, before slowly slipping out of the room.

"I'll teach you, if you want." Jou smiled unsurely.

"I'm not sure I have time for that. I have work-" Seto cut him off, carefully putting the pieces away and setting the set (complete with game-themed chess board) to the side.

"I know you do. I'm not entirely sure how you have time to breathe, let alone go to school and pass. Somewhat," he added, and Jou stuck out his tongue.

"My da had debts ta pay, and he wasn't workin, just gambling' off tha money an' drinkin what was left. So I started payin' em off, an' moved away. Finished a while ago, but I don't wanna quit in case them gangs da was borrowin' from start comin' ta me fer his payments again." He shrugged, settling a bit more into the couch.

"I s'pose they won't, since they haven't yet, but I don't like not bein' sure, and I really don't like bein' idle. Tha's part o' tha reason I do so bad at school; I just wanna move, build, do somethin' instead o' sitttin' there."

Seto considered this, and all the times Jou had gotten detention for not sitting still or paying attention.

"Why not tell the teachers?" Jou snorted.

"They'll just pump me fulla pills, if they even bother with that. I'll survive. Prolly won't go t' college anyway, so I just gotta survive a few more years o' this."

"Not going to bother? Why not?" Seto had no plans to do so either, but that was because he was already set and it would only be a waste of money. Mokuba would go, probably.

"Cause I'm not good enough to make a scholarship, an' I'd prefer somethin' basic, really. Success is nice n' all, but I really don't care to be rich. That's yer area." He grinned at him, but Seto was in a bit of a blind shock.

"You don't want to bother, because you would prefer staying in the middle class?" How could anyone not want to move up in life? It was mind boggling.

"Well, yeah. I'll live a nice life, leave somethin' to mah sister or kids or whatever, and move on. I'm not gonna spend half my life fightin' fer the top, and th' other half ta keep it. Seems like a waste ta me, and I already did tha before, with my fists. It was a pain then, and I can't see that changin'." He paused awkwardly, before standing and stretching a bit.

"I should probably go… unless I'm stayin' tha night?" He looked hopeful, and Seto nodded just to make him smile again.

"Cool! I'll just kip in here then, I guess…" he began walking to where Seto assumed his bag had ended up.

"No, you won't," Jou looked up, confused. "I live in a mansion, and you think you're sleeping on a couch? Come on, there's guest rooms upstairs. I'm not sure where Mokuba went, but we probably won't see him for the rest of the night." Seto led him upstairs to a guest room, a few doors away from his own.

"Here you go. You mentioned working tomorrow?" Jou nodded.

"Yeah, but not until the afternoon." Seto smiled, just a bit, before opening the door and stepping back.

"Well, good night then." Jou paused, before turning to him and kissing him on the cheek.

"Merry Christmas, Kaib'." He walked inside, quickly shutting the door. Seto stared, before slowly walking towards his room, muttering 'merry Christmas' under his breath, and thinking that tomorrow couldn't come fast enough.


	3. Chapter 3

Seto awoke early, and immediately felt as though he needed to remember something important.

_Business deal? Problems at Kaiba Corp.? No, no work this week, it's Christmas… _Jou was here somewhere still, he could smell breakfast.

_That's it! Something with Jou… but what? _He ran through his memories of the night before, finally lighting on the last one of the night. Jou kissing him.

Just on the cheek, but it was still a kiss. That implied romantic feelings.

Seto shook his head, looking around. In his daze, he appeared to have gotten dressed and was standing in the bathroom with a toothbrush. He glanced at the shower, before deciding it was too much hassle (and he was, as previously stated, dressed already), and he would wash later today.

_Well, I'll just try and ask later today, before he leaves… _Ah, that was another thing he wanted to discuss. Jou's working habits. Being prepared was fine, as was wanting to be active, but all that work was too much. Seto wondered if he could talk him into something less stressful at least, if not just quitting and getting a hobby.

He wandered downstairs, to find Mokuba shooting past him for the kitchen, yelling "_Pancakes!" _at the top of his voice. That was breakfast solved, at least. He did wonder when Jou had gotten up this time, to already be cooking. Seto was no slouch.

By the time he reached the kitchen (running was undignified, panting triply so), Mokuba was on his third plate, mumbling about how Jou was a god in punk's clothing, and how he should never leave, and why couldn't their regular cook manage something like this?

"Our regular cook only makes dinner, Mokuba, and occasionally lunch. How would you know if she can make pancakes?" Jou grinned at him from where he was flipping the rest of breakfast at the stove. Who knew they could nearly reach the ceiling?

"You guys don't have breakfast prepared? Why's that?" Seto shrugged, going across the room for the coffee machine.

"I prefer nobody having access to the house while I'm asleep, so no workers come in before noon. Security lets them in. Maids and such clean up and leave before we arrive, most days, and they try and stay out of the way when we're around." Jou raised a brow, but nodded.

"And you don't want any of them living in-house? Not even security?" Mokuba shook his head this time.

"Seto doesn't like the idea of them being in the same building, so they live on-property, in another building closer to the entrance. It's weird, but Roland doesn't find a problem with it, so I guess it works." Jou frowned, tossing the last of the pancakes in the air.

"Roland?"

"Seto's main bodyguard. I think you met him once or twice, but he doesn't really bother with introductions. He's around somewhere, probably doing security checks again. He's a bit paranoid." Seto snorted into his coffee.

"That's an understatement. But you haven't been kidnapped lately, so it must be working." Mokuba glared at him, but turned back to his food after a moment of no reaction. Jou stifled a small laugh, before glancing at the clock.

"It's only eight? Jeez, you guys get up early." Seto made his way over to the table to eat, grabbing and dragging Jou along with him.

"Sit. Eat. I get up early because I need to work. Mokuba would be dead to the world if he hadn't smelled food." Another glare, but this one turned to a sheepish grin as it became directed at Jounouchi.

"I can't help wanting to sleep in! I'm a growing boy!" Jou ruffled his hair, grinning.

"Sure ya are. Soon ya'll be as tall as Yugi!"

"Hey!"

_Another peaceful morning, _Seto thought as he sipped his coffee.

~{}~

"Jounouchi." Jou looked up as Kaiba called his name, confused. He hadn't left dishes out or something, had he?

_You know that's not it._ He growled, trying to will the voice away. It stayed, instead replaying the evening before, with commentary.

"Jounouchi?" Kaiba was peering at him in confusion now, and he realized he was supposed to respond.

"Er… yeah?" He was given an odd look for his troubles. Really, he knew that having conversations with himself wasn't the greatest of ideas when other people were around, but Kaiba could at least be polite and ignore it!

"We need to talk. Come with me." He began walking away, not even bothering to see if Jou was following. Which he was, but that was beside the point! It was still rude!

"You could _ask,_" he grumbled under his breath. Wasn't Kaiba all nice and polite the other day? Was it the Christmas spirit, or had Jou ruined it when he'd kissed him?

He wasn't sure what answer would be worse, honestly.

They entered the living room, or whatever it was called, Jou wasn't sure. He wouldn't put it past Kaiba to change the name just because he could.

Kaiba sat down, and gestured for him to do the same. As he did, he saw the chess set still sitting on the floor near the couch. He'd have to remember to grab that, when he left.

"Jounouchi, I may have romantic feelings towards you." Well, he didn't beat around the bush, did he?

"…" His mouth didn't seem to be working. Really, why was it that he could never _stop_ talking when he needed to shut up, but be entirely silent now?

"And from what happened yesterday, I'm inclined to think you feel the same. So, I propose we explore this."

_Huh?_ His mouth did manage to work this time, though that really shouldn't count. Kaiba rolled his eyes.

"I'm asking you out on a date, Jounouchi." Come on, please be able to speak! This muteness was incredibly annoying!

"I… erm… well, okay then," he finally sputtered out. Well, he had a hot guy who he'd recently discovered not to be a total asshole, and even more recently found the guy could be kind to someone other than Mokuba. He could be a little flustered, right?

"Eloquent, pup," he smirked at him. Shouldn't dating make him seem less evil, not more?

"Yah just asked me out, and now you're goin' back to insulting me? Man, we gotta work on yer people skills!" Jou shook his head, not understanding him at all.

"I'm not trying to insult you. Why is everything I call you besides your name an insult?" He sounded annoyed at him, nothing new. Still, that was something to think about…

"Ya know tha I hate bein' called a dog! If not the first time you did, than every time after tha'!" He huffed, settling further into the couch.

"I can't really help the fact that you remind me of a dog. Any nickname I end up with is canine-related. Why do you hate it so much, anyway?" Jou twitched.

"It was a gang name o' mine. Hound, or mongrel sometimes. An' whatta mean, I'm dog-like?" He wondered if Kaiba was smart enough to avoid insulting him with this. He was supposed to be a genius, after all.

"You're loyal, can be playful, or vicious if needed. Not to mention you have puppy eyes that rival _Yugi's, _which should be illegal, considering he looks like a baby panda." Jou snorted, mulling the answer over. It technically hadn't been insulting, but he felt like he was supposed to take offense to it.

"If it bothers you so much, I can stop… But I make no guarantees that I'll always remember." Oh my god, Kaiba was willing to compromise with him? Hell, maybe he was serious.

"Don't sweat it. I just won't guarantee not decking yah if I'm inna bad mood, deal?" He held out his hand, and was mildly surprised to find Kaiba's in his.

He was somewhat less surprised to find it being used as leverage to yank him forward into Kaiba's lap.

"Kaib'! Wha the hell?" Kaiba leered, literally _leered _at him, before he simply leaned down and kissed him.

Katsuya's mind exploded.

One part was running around screaming in shock. It usually did that, so he ignored it.

Another was ignoring the entire mess and watching their surroundings; listening for possible threats and the like. This part was annoying at some times, but had saved his life before, so he moved on.

This part of his mind was actually concentrating on kissing _back_, which he commended, while another part sighed that '_Seto was such a good kisser!'_ Hmm… that part of his mind might actually be useful in the future, now that he was actually involved with someone.

There were other parts of his mind working as well, remembering what time it was and when he worked, trying to solve that _one _problem on the homework assigned before break that he couldn't solve, or other mundane tasks, but these were largely ignored as irrelevant.

Katsuya decided that he could go back to just kissing now.

~{}~

Seto was _very _pleased. Jou returned his feelings, they would organize a date for later this week, and more to follow if it went well, and he was currently engaged in a rather nice make-out session.

"Kaiba…" Jou broke away, murmuring his name.

"It's Seto, if we're going to be dating," he corrected, running a hand through Jou's messy locks.

"Seto, then. You… can call me Katsuya if you really want, though I kinda prefer Jou," he leaned into the hand in his hair, smiling faintly.

"Jou it is. What time did you have work again?" Honestly, he'd never thought he would have to ask anyone that, especially while not having anywhere for himself to be.

"Mmm? Oh, at three. It'll take me an hour to get there, though…"

"I'll drive you. Come on, we're going upstairs," he stood, grabbing Jou's hand again. Jou balked.

"If you think you're getting sex _this _early, you-" Seto silenced him with another kiss.

"Relax, even I'm not as socially stupid as that. But I don't want Mokuba to walk in on us, thank you very much." He began walking again, only to stop short when Jou responded with, "But he already did…"

"What?" He turned sharply. Jou blinked at him in confusion, tilting his head to the side. And he thought he didn't resemble a dog?

"He walked in a few minutes ago, stared for a second, and bolted out. It was kinda weird, since we weren't doin' nuthin…" he trailed off, staring at him. Seto wondered what kind of face he was making.

"You… how do you even know that? You were facing away from the door!" He began leading them towards his room again anyway, figuring that, if nothing else, they could have more privacy for these conversations. Plus, there weren't security cameras in his room.

"Reflection in the glass o' tha paintin across the room," Seto turned slightly to stare at him. "It was really shiny!"

"You're something else, Jou. Not sure what, but something." Jou frowned, still looking confused.

"Wait, how did you _not _see him? You _were _looking at the door!" Seto rolled his eyes, opening the door to his room, and flipping on the light.

"I was a bit preoccupied watching _you, _oddly enough. Was I not as much of a distraction?" Paying attention to your surroundings was one thing, but he would have had to be actively looking at the glass to see anything!

Realization finally seemed to dawn in Jou's eyes.

"Oh! No, I was watching you, I just… another part of my brain wasn't?" He grinned awkwardly, shuffling his feet.

"What." How did that even work? He had different parts of his head? Granted, Seto could multi-task fairly well, but that seemed to be pushing it. On the other hand…

"This is one of those ex-gang member street kid things I have no hope of understanding, isn't it?" Jou stared at him, before nodding.

"I see. In that case…" he pounced, dragging Jou straight onto the bed and continuing where they'd left off.

Two hours later, after dropping Jou off at the grocery mart he was apparently working at today, Seto decided they really did need to talk about his work schedule.

After he organized a date for the two of them. Maybe Mokuba had some ideas…

**A.N. **Well, that's it! For this story anyway. I hope to write more with them soon, though, so if any of you enjoyed this, keep on the look-out for more!

A quick word on the POV changes and characterizations:

There are multiple reasons for each characteristic they have. Seto is a major CEO and a genius inventor, so he needs to be able to focus on one train of thought while having momentary lapses into other things. That's why his is more structured and focused.

Jou, on the other hand, has no need for that kind of focus, and considering his background, if could actually be harmful. He would need to be able to process multiple threats coming at him at any given time, so his thoughts need to be fluid and shift easily. That's why _his _thoughts are so scatter-brained at times. As for his multiple-head bit up there…

When he's _truly _surprised, and he was, just not that Seto did it, he needs to process quicker. So, he essentially sets parts of his mind to different tasks so they can prioritize. So, one is 'working,' and the others are processing random bits of information. In this case, he turns off this 'mode' of his head so he can focus on making out, which is part of the reason he didn't react when he saw Mokuba. He wasn't really aware of what he'd seen until later, when he could focus on something other than Seto.

So yeah, amateur psychology here! Happy holidays, hope you enjoyed, now go do something important!

… Like reading Reizbar Ookami's stuff, it's epic!


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